


Too Good to Say Goodbye

by elaborateheists



Category: Mass Effect - All Media Types, Mass Effect: Andromeda
Genre: 5 Times, 5+1 Things, Dorks in Love, Drunken Confessions, F/M, Fluff, Humor, Side Quests, interfering squadmates, realizing things
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-01
Updated: 2019-07-01
Packaged: 2020-06-02 06:35:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 5,107
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19435915
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elaborateheists/pseuds/elaborateheists
Summary: 5 times Reyes and Ryder said goodbye on Kadara (and 1 time they didn’t).





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is based on my Ryder, Matilda, the orange-haired, kind-hearted tech geek slash snarky Infiltrator and sniper. She went into Kadara thinking she had to act tough to survive, but after a while realized she wasn't acting at all.
> 
> Every time after High Noon that I had to go back to Kadara for a mission, I thought of Ryder and Reyes reuniting, so that's how this story came about. Hope you enjoy the fluff!
> 
> 1\. After High Noon, but before Ryder goes to Tartarus.

He was standing by the Nomad as Ryder trudged away from the outpost, down the bumpy dirt path. It had been a long day of vidcalls back to the Nexus and prepping the new inhabitants of Ditaeon for life on Kadara. She was still processing Reyes' secret identity, and the role she had played in Sloane's death, and uh, well, apparently being at a point in her life where she was cool with having sex in a cave. Vetra is never going to let her live _that_ down. (But it was worth it.) Ryder didn't regret her choices; if she'd learned anything on Kadara it was that hesitation is deadly. She had wanted Sloane out of power, and she cared about Reyes. She trusted her gut...but she still had some digesting to do. 

So she had taken a few days to work on the outpost and avoid Reyes, even though the outpost wouldn’t exist without him. He had asked her to come and see him when she was ready to talk, but she had never shown. He couldn’t help but wonder if she was going to leave Kadara without saying goodbye.

"Matilda," Reyes said softly as she got close enough to hear, even though she surely saw him as she approached. He had tried not to stand in the shadows, but the daylight was fading.

A simple "hi" was all she could get out through her exhaustion and ambivalence, but she tried to soften her expression. She was happy to see him, always. She did, however, stand only as close to him as needed for conversation. 

"Long day?" Ryder nodded emphatically. "I wanted to stay out of your way, but I did work on setting up a top-notch security team and strategy for the outpost. It will be a priority for the Collective. I promise."

"Thank you, Reyes. That means a lot."

"I thought I could walk you through it, if you like? Since we're here."

Ryder took a moment to consider it. "I appreciate that, but honestly, I'm wiped out. Can we talk about it later? I'm sure you covered all our bases."

"Of course. So, are you leaving Kadara tonight?" he asked in a neutral tone, but his eyes betrayed his worry. 

Ryder looked down at the ground. "No. But there are some issues on Voeld, so we have to leave tomorrow." Her gaze rose to meet his. "Unfortunately."

Reyes let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding. Ryder gave him a small smile and he took another breath before speaking again. "I know you're tired, but would you come back to Tartarus with me? To talk some more?"

"Sure. It’s probably time that we did that." She strode toward the Nomad but stopped when she realized Reyes looked… sheepish? Was that even possible? "Is something wrong?"

"Well. I rode out here with some of that security team I mentioned, and then there was a problem at the Port so I sent them back..."

Ryder's eyes lit up. "So you were really banking on me giving you a ride back, huh?" She crossed her arms. "I don't know, Vidal, it's gonna cost you."

"Absolutely anything for you, my dear."

With that Ryder couldn’t hold back anymore. She broke through the invisible force field between them and hugged Reyes so fiercely that he stumbled back. 

“You drive a hard bargain, Pathfinder,” he said quietly as he held her. 

Ryder stepped back to look him in the eye. “Oh no, I’m going to need a _lot_ more than one hug,” she said, and for a moment it felt like the banter from their early days, when she still trusted him.

Ryder turned around and hopped into the Nomad and Reyes followed. They rode back in mostly comfortable silence, after Reyes fiddled with Liam’s makeshift music player and received a horrible feedback screech for his efforts. When they finally reached Reyes’ private room, Ryder had just about made up her mind on how she wanted to deal with this. He sat down but she continued standing, almost hoping that he would speak first. And he delivered.

“Can I start?” Reyes asked. “It will be brief.”

Ryder nodded.

“I need you to know that I don’t want any more secrets between us. I can spare you the gory details if you like, but I suspect you can handle it. Though I have heard that ignorance is bliss.” Reyes looked at Ryder intently, trying to gauge her reaction. She didn't smile at his joke, but she didn't look angry, either.

“Reyes. I’ve had to make a lot of hard decisions as the Pathfinder, which I never even asked to be, by the way, so no, I don’t care about plausible deniability, or protecting my _virtue_ , or any bullshit like that. I can handle whatever you’ve got. I _want_ to handle it. I want us to run the outpost together. And...I want to be with you.”

Reyes’ hazel eyes sparkled in the dim light. “Okay. Like I said, Matilda, anything for you.”

* * *

Leaving the next morning was hard, and not just because they had been up for most of the night, getting to know each other all over again. Ryder gave Reyes a sleepy goodbye kiss, and she walked back to the Tempest alone, feeling lighter than she had in a long time. Some passersby swore they heard her humming a classical tune to herself.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 2\. During the quest “Peebee: Remnant Scanner” when they’re tracking down the Remnant tech, on the path of Peebee's loyalty quest but not quite there yet.

“So imagine my surprise when I’m tracking the activity of an outlaw gang and I find a Pathfinder in the fray.” Reyes crossed his arms and looked disapprovingly at Ryder. They were standing in the deserted area just inside the gate to the Badlands, with the gloom of the slums creeping in on one side and the sun and the scent of the wilderness drifting in from the other.

“You know my entire job is dangerous, right?” Ryder huffed. “This is just a favor for a friend.”

He moved towards her. “And that’s admirable, but you rushed in without planning ahead—”

“I told you I was coming to Kadara, didn’t I? What did you think it was for, a beer run?” Ryder wasn’t backing down on this. She stood toe to toe with him.

“I’m just saying, Tilda, if you can get mad at me for having fake duels then I can get mad at you for putting yourself-”

“You know I wasn’t that mad the duel was fake, I was mad when I thought you were really-”

Peebee laughed nervously and interrupted with her usual rapid-fire cadence. “Uh, hey guys. Hate to get in the middle here but it seems like you have some er, tension, that you might need to uh, go release? Know what I’m saying? So I’m gonna see myself out. Ryder, can you meet me in the port ASAP? After your… business here?”

“Of course,” Ryder replied, looking at Peebee quizzically.

“Okay, great,” Peebee said, backing away. “As soon as possible, but not, you know, before you’re in a better mood. You two have...fun?” Peebee pointed finger guns at them, then turned and power-walked away. Vetra shrugged and followed her, but not before sending a withering stare Reyes’ way, just for kicks.

Reyes and Ryder stood there awkwardly for a moment, their argument having fizzled out. Neither had noticed how closely they were standing together until now. Or that they were in a puddle. Then Ryder’s eyes got wide.

“What is it?” Reyes asked.

“Oh, I just realized what Peebee was talking about,” she laughed to herself. “So what do you say, Reyes? Think we should go _release some tension_?”

Reyes laughed too. “I thought you’d never ask.” He grabbed her by the waist and pulled her to him for a long-awaited kiss. She threw her arms around his neck and closed her eyes, forgetting everything but him. Soon she was pulling at his collar, and when his mouth moved to her neck, her eyes flew open.

“We should probably continue this elsewhere,” she said.

Reyes pulled back, still in a daze. “Hm? Oh, yes. Good idea.” He put his hand in hers and guided her away from where they were standing. “Come on, I’d love for you to see my place.”

* * *

Back at the port, Ryder hurried up the steps to the observation deck. Peebee grinned when she saw the Pathfinder, who was definitely a little worse for the wear. Her ponytail was only halfway up, she was just carrying her belt, and there were already some marks showing above the scarf on her neck. They hadn't so much toured Reyes' clandestine apartment as they had well, wrecked it.

“I am both impressed and concerned by the amount of time that took," Peebee quipped. Ryder rolled her eyes and smiled. As the pair peered out at the market, Peebee reached over to brush some debris off the back of her friend's jacket. Ryder shot her a "thank you" look then gazed back down to see Reyes walking up to one of the merchants. Their eyes met. He winked at her, and her smile widened.

Kallo’s voice crackled over the comms. She turned away and prepared herself for whatever was next, but she was still smiling.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 3\. At the bar after Drack’s loyalty mission.

“Reyessss Vidaaaaal,” Ryder sang into her comm.

“Tilda? Is everything alright?” Reyes’ voice rang out in her ears. Well, maybe the ringing was actually from all the whiskey.

“Everything’s fan-freakin-tastic, boo. Come drink with us!”

Reyes chuckled. “Where are you right now?”

“I’m here! Here. Right here. At Koala Song.”

“Kralla’s Song? You didn’t tell me you were coming to Kadara.”

“Last minute celebrity..cel-e-bra-tor-y drinks. We kicked ass!”

“Hell yeah we did!” Reyes heard Drack’s gravelly voice yell out.

“You’re with Drack? I don’t want to interrupt-”

“Ah, cut the shit,” Drack interrupted. “Ryder and I have bonded enough, now she wants to see you.”

“Well, alright. I’ll be there soon.” The line clicked off.

Ryder sighed loudly and rested her chin on her hand, looking 100 percent like the lovestruck puppy she had been trying so hard not to be.

“You got it bad, huh?” Drack asked. Ryder simply nodded.

Reyes let Keema know he was taking the night off, barring any emergencies. She had assumed he knew the Pathfinder was in town and got in a few solid minutes of teasing before letting him go. He had been out in the caves earlier and hadn’t seen the Tempest land, but at least this was a pleasant surprise. And after his week of taking out bandits with their sights set on Ditaeon, he might have even deserved a break.

As he walked into Kralla’s Song, he saw a man apparently just returning to consciousness being half-carried, half-dragged out by a friend.

He looked back at them as he approached Ryder and Drack. “Not your doing, by any chance?” Ryder and Drack laughed in different octaves. Reyes leaned in and kissed Ryder on the cheek. “Hello, my dear.” He turned to the krogan and stuck out his hand. “Drack.”

Drack looked down in fake disgust. “Krogan don’t do a lot of handshaking.”

Reyes pulled back his hand. “Oh! What do you do, then?”

Drack grinned menacingly. “Headbutts.”

Reyes’ hand automatically went to the back of his head, imagining the pain of a krogan-to-human headbutt. “Ah. Well. Maybe later, then.” He paused, looking for something to talk about. “So it looks like I have some catching up to do. Umi? Four shots of the good stuff?” The asari slid the glasses across the bar. Reyes downed one, then gave one shot each to Drack and Ryder. He lifted the remaining glass in the air and looked at his companions. “Salud.” They clinked their glasses together, Drack doing so begrudgingly, and gulped down their drinks. Reyes signaled to Umi for another. “So, what are we celebrating?”

Ryder and Drack told Reyes all about their daring rescue over several more refreshments. At one point, Ryder hiccupped off to the bathroom.

“So,” Drack started. “Now is probably a good time for me to threaten your life if you _ever_ hurt Ryder again.”

Reyes took a long swig of his drink. Liquid courage had nothing on krogans. “I swear, Drack. I never meant to hurt her the first time. I tell her everything now. Down to the detail, if she wants. Nothing like that will ever happen again.”

Drack grumbled.

“When she first came to Kadara, I didn’t know…” Reyes looked dreamy for a moment, but that could have been the alcohol setting in. “I'm good at planning ahead, but I never expected that I would fall in love with The Pathfinder.”

Drack shifted on his feet. “You love her?” Reyes nodded as he took another sip of his drink. He had never said it out loud before. His head felt heavy.

“Does she know that?” Drack asked.

“I haven’t told her, if that’s what you mean. Tilda has so much going on, so much responsibility—” He was rambling. “I don’t want it to distract her. Or be a burden, if she doesn’t—”

“Bullshit.” Drack interrupted. “You’re scared to tell her.”

Reyes shrugged. “That too.”

“Aren’t you supposed to be some big bad criminal?”

“Only when he has to be,” Ryder said as she returned to the bar and threw her arm over Reyes’ shoulders. “What did I miss?”

Reyes eyed Drack, but the krogan was the first to speak. “Just telling this ‘third-rate smuggler’ that I’ll kick his ass if he doesn’t treat you right.”

Ryder snorted and leaned closer to Reyes. “Thank you, Drack.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Drack replied. “Now why don’t you get out of here and leave me in peace?”

Ryder shrugged. “Okay, see you back at the… the thing that flies through space!” She grabbed Reyes’ arm and pulled him away as he finished his fifth? sixth? drink. He’d lost count.

As soon as they were outside of the bar, Ryder shoved Reyes into the nearest wall. “I missed you,” she murmured as she leaned into him. As their tongues intertwined and their hands roamed, drunken poetic thoughts popped into her head. _What’s that phrase, about kissing like you’re thirsty and need water? His mouth is the desert. Yeah. That’s how this feels._ She laughed at herself and Reyes smiled down at her with heavy-lidded eyes. Ryder grabbed his arm again. “Come on, now I want you to see _my_ place.”

They stumbled their way to the Tempest, and once on board Ryder likely woke everyone up with her giggling. Lexi and Suvi were still up in the medbay and heard the commotion, but Suvi talked the doctor out of intervening.

Ryder and Reyes left a trail of clothes leading to the Pathfinder’s quarters, arriving there after what felt like way too long, if you asked Reyes. He stopped to see the infamous space hamster, but never took his hands off of Ryder. She was kissing him like she’d been stranded in the desert and he was water. _Is that how the line goes?_ he wondered. Either way, he never wanted it to end. He gently pushed her back on the bed and leaned over her. She reached up to caress his cheek and started to say something, but was interrupted by a yawn. He laughed and put his hand on hers.

“Tired?” he asked.

Ryder shook her head violently but then yawned again. She chuckled. “Remind me to _not_ try to go drink-for-drink with a krogan next time?” She hadn’t come close, but had made a commendable effort.

“Sure thing.” Reyes pulled Ryder up so her head was on a pillow, then pulled the blanket up and crawled under it next to her. She was out immediately. He stayed up a bit longer, just watching her sleep. He leaned over and kissed her on the head. “I love you so much,” he whispered, then laid down next to her and drifted off.

Ryder’s eyes blinked open the next morning and she immediately wished they hadn’t. “Oh… oh no,” she blurted out and then ran for the bathroom. When she got back, Reyes was sitting up in bed and holding his head.

“Good morning,” he greeted her. “Did I… headbutt Drack last night?”

“Honestly? I don’t even know.”

They broke into laughter until Ryder realized what time it was. “Oh crap. Reyes, I’m so sorry, but this was really meant to be a pit stop, and we’re supposed to be on our way to Elaaden right now.”

He walked over to her and wrapped his arms around her waist. “No apology necessary, Pathfinder. I just have to gather my things and avoid my fan club on the way out.”

“They’re really warming up to you, or the idea of you, or… okay. SAM? Can you open a private line to Gil?”

“Good mooorning, Ryder. What’s up?” Gil’s voice came on over the comm, loud enough for Ryder and Reyes to wince.

“Hey Gil, do a favor for your favorite Pathfinder? Tell me a way to sneak out of the Tempest without disturbing the crew?”

“Well, I can tell you a way to sneak _into_ the Tempest is to not laugh the whole way and leave your clothes everywhere.” Ryder gulped, but Gil laughed. “Honestly, Ryder, everyone already knows your boyfriend is here, so why have the man crawl through some air ducts with what I assume is a pretty gnarly hangover?”

Boyfriend, huh. That sounded good to her. “Okay, that’s… fair. Thanks, Gil.”

“No problem!” Click.

Reyes looked down at Ryder, really not wanting to say goodbye. “Well, at least you’ve got a pragmatic crew on your side.” 

Ryder faked a serious expression. “Mm yes, very true.” She stared at his lips until they met hers. 

“Be careful out there?” Reyes asked her when he finally pulled back. 

Ryder smiled wistfully up at him. “I will if you will,” she replied, then watched him throw on the rest of his clothes and leave her room.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 4\. Near the end of The Firefighters quest, with the people who tried to hack SAM.

Ryder was speeding back to Kadara Port after giving Alain his Cybernetic Device and discovering Katherine’s plan to destroy the quantum computers on the Nexus. (In a split second, she had decided she could drive back faster than Kallo and Suvi could prepare for extraction. Her passengers, Jaal and Cora, did not love this decision.) She burst out of the Nomad onto the loading dock to collect any squadmates who hadn’t boarded yet and nearly ran over Reyes.

She clasped his gloved hands in hers. “Reyes, hi! I have to go. There are bombs on the Nexus. It’s gonna be fine. I think. Okay, bye, I love you!” She gave him a quick kiss and tried to leave but he was still holding her hands, looking a little shocked and a little ecstatic. Then Ryder realized what she had said. “I love you, too,” he said, and let go of her.

She smirked. “I know.” She turned back towards the Tempest.

“How?” Reyes called out.

Ryder looked back over her shoulder. “Drack told me.” She grinned and jogged onto her ship.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 5\. Movie night, now with added Scott. (We’ll pretend they drop him back at the Hyperion at some point after this, hm?) Right before the final mission to Meridian.

"You got the item?" she asked in a low voice as she stood in the shadows of an empty alleyway on Kadara.

"If you've got the payment, sure," the smuggler replied gruffly.

Ryder tried to hold in her laughter as she made her dramatic entrance. She did not succeed. Reyes beamed and shook his head at her.

"I finally convince you to take advantage of my _business_ skills and it's to track down an old movie?"

"It's rare! And banned. Very dangerous stuff." Ryder waggled her eyebrows.

"Banned where?"

Ryder shrugged. "Somewhere. And now we can _finally_ have this damn movie night we've been planning. You're invited, by the way."

"Sitting next to you in a dark room for a few hours? I can get on board with that."

"Mmm. As nice as that sounds, you'll have to be on your best behavior, Charlatan."

"I think we both know that my best behavior still isn't very good." Now Reyes was the one doing the eyebrow-waggling.

Ryder rolled her eyes and laughed at him. "Yes, cheeseball, but my little brother is going to be there. Don't want to set a bad example."

Reyes knew they were twins but indulged her. "I'm sure he looks up to you. I'll do my best, Pathfinder." He looked distracted, but Ryder just kissed him on the cheek and flitted off to get everything ready.

* * *

Reyes arrived at the Tempest that evening with extra popcorn and beer he had _acquired_ that afternoon in the Badlands, wishing the ship had a doorbell. He couldn't remember the last time he wore casual clothes like this, but something else had lowered his swagger level considerably. He paced around the edge of the outpost a few times then finally tried walking up the ramp to the ship's doors. They slid open and he barely avoided a collision with Jaal, who was running through the doorway bellowing, "Intruder!!! You cannot take our vessel!"

Reyes, immobile, stared at the angaran, who laughed heartily. "Got you. Ryder asked me to retrieve you."

"Ha, there’s that sense of humor I’ve heard about," Reyes replied, trying to act like he wasn't shaken. He heard more footsteps approaching from inside the ship.

"Jaal? Is everything okay?" A man with hair as vibrant as Matilda's and a tattoo that matched hers emerged. This had to be Scott.

"Ah, Scott! Yes, thank you. I was just playing a joke. This is Reyes Vidal."

Reyes stuck out his hand to shake Scott's. "Good to meet you, man," Scott said warmly.

"You too."

Jaal looked back and forth between the two men. "Fascinating. The first meeting. Between the brother and the lover." Reyes cleared his throat and Scott gave Jaal a _why the hell would you say that?_ look.

"You guys really need to loosen up. Come on." Jaal beckoned them to board the ship and Scott followed. Reyes hurried to catch up.

"Hey Scott? If you have some time tonight, could we talk about something?"

Scott hesitated just a bit. "Uh, sure. Yeah. After the vid?" Reyes nodded.

* * *

During one of their many intermissions (cramming 13 people and one pyjak into Ryder's quarters meant a lot of side conversations), Scott went to the kitchen to replenish their snacks and signaled for Reyes to join him. They had chatted a bit so far, and Reyes hoped they were developing a rapport. He was usually so good at that.

"So," Scott started, pouring popcorn into a bowl, "I'm guessing you want to talk to me about Tilly?"

Reyes stopped both at the adorable nickname and to choose his words carefully. "Yes. I've been considering something, and well, I want to… make a real commitment to her. And you know her better than me, better than anyone. So I wanted to talk to you about it."

"Are you asking for my blessing?" Scott asked, amused.

"God no. Tilda would hate that."

Scott smiled. "You do know her pretty well then." He paused. "Alright, Reyes. I'd like to get to know you better, but time isn't really on our side at the moment. So all I can say right now is, my sister picked you and that makes you a lucky man. Don’t take it for granted."

"I wouldn’t dream of it."

Scott's expression grew serious. "She told you about our mom."

"That she's in cryo until you find a cure for her illness, yes. I'm sorry, I can't imagine how difficult that is." When Ryder had told Reyes the news, she was almost too overwhelmed to talk about it, but he had noticed she had become even more driven to finish her mission since then.

"I'm not sure Tilly will want to, you know, move forward with anything until we figure that out." Scott tilted his head, thinking. "But. My sister’s constantly reminding me that Mom has always wanted us to live our lives to the fullest."

"I'd say you two are doing a good job of that," Reyes replied.

"Yeah," Scott huffed, thinking of his extra-long space nap. "Tilly is, at least. So. When are you going to ask her?"

"Oh, after she finds Meridian. I wouldn't dare mess up this mission." He thought back to his conversation at the bar with Drack, about being afraid, but he swore to himself this was different. This was big.

"So you really think it's going to work?"

"Matilda said she's going to make it work. That's all I need to know."

"Yeah. Me too."

They walked back to Ryder's room to find her acting out an over-dramatic death scene with Kallo. The crew erupted into applause when it ended, and Reyes looked around to see the way each and every person there looked at Ryder. They all looked up to her, not just Scott. Reyes really _was_ lucky.

They had put on another vid after the first one ended, and everyone but Ryder and Reyes had promptly fallen asleep. Scott had somehow made it to the bed while everyone else was piled on the couch and floor. Ryder delicately extricated her shoulder from under Drack's head and pulled Reyes off the couch. "Come on," she whispered.

They made their way to the top of the Tempest where Ryder sat in front of a wide window and patted the seat next to her. Reyes joined her and stretched an arm around her shoulders. They spent the next few hours talking quietly, sometimes about nothing, sometimes about everything, until a fiery sunrise appeared over Kadara.

"I should go," Reyes said reluctantly. "Aren't you tired?"

Ryder feigned nonchalance. "I'll sleep on the way there." Reyes smiled but they still stood up.

They padded through the silent ship holding hands until Ryder blurted out an “eugh” noise. Reyes looked at her expectantly.

"Oh, I just saw that the kitchen is a mess. I should take care of it." Ryder didn't even know why she brought it up, but then realized she was probably stalling. She had never felt the need to clean the galley before. Like, ever.

"Come on. I'll help you." Reyes walked into the small room and gathered the trash while Ryder loaded the dishwasher.

"This is nice," Reyes said as they moved around each other with ease.

"What, cleaning?" Ryder scoffed.

"Doing this side by side, you know? I've been thinking…" _Damn, was he doing this now?_

Ryder closed the dishwasher and gave him her full attention. _What is he up to now?_

He took a deep breath. "After this mission, Matilda, I was hoping we could talk about the future. And the possibility of spending it together."

Ryder's smile lit up the whole room as she moved towards him. "Yes!" she exclaimed, then continued in a calmer tone. "Yes. I would be happy to schedule a time to discuss that with you." She smirked.

Reyes breathed out a laugh. "Well, as long as you have the time, Pathfinder."

"I always have time for you, Reyes." She was standing in front of him now. Reyes grabbed Ryder and lifted her onto the counter. She giggled and swung her legs around his waist to pull him even closer. "So. You have a plan here, Vidal?"

Reyes leaned into her. "Almost always, yes." His eyes gleamed. "Hey SAM?" he asked. "Could you do me a favor? Close and lock the kitchen door, and then give us some alone time?"

"While Ryder has conveyed her affection for you to me, Mr. Vidal, I will only follow her orders. Pathfinder?" SAM asked.

“Yes, SAM. Please.” The doors slid shut.

Reyes didn't waste a moment more. He kissed Ryder with a desperation, wishing he could slow time and savor every second he had with her. He couldn’t manage the former, but he damn well did the latter. 

* * *

Reyes watched from the ground as the Tempest took off later that morning, and blew a kiss as the ship shot off to the Civki system, deciding then that he would see Ryder again sooner than she thought.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> +1. Post-game.

“One last world to explore,” Ryder said, shifting around excitedly. Reyes unlocked the doors and she rushed in past him, carrying her hamster in its cage. She twirled around and tried to take in everything at once. It was a pretty standard living space — more spacious than most, thanks to her title and his connections. But to her it looked as perfect as Meridian, which was now thriving.

Ryder set the cage down on a table next to a picture of the Tempest crew and a bouquet of supposedly edible flowers from Suvi. Then she trotted off to the kitchen, still investigating. Reyes looked at her while she looked at everything else. “This is great,” Ryder said as she hopped up to sit on the counter. With a mischievous look, she tilted her head for him to come over to her. Reyes walked over and leaned in to her. “Careful, my dear, this is going to give me flashbacks to the Tempest kitchen.”

Ryder laughed. “At this point, what place wouldn’t give us flashbacks?”

“That’s true. The storage closet is a personal favorite of mine, though.”

Ryder tilted her head and adopted her faux-serious tone. “It _is_ an important decision.”

“What is?” Reyes’ face was millimeters away from hers.

“How we’re going to christen our new home. It’ll say a lot about us. Gotta send the right message.” She closed the short distance between them.

When they reluctantly separated to catch their breath, it seemed to really set in. “Our home, hm?” Reyes asked. “Has a nice ring to it.”

“It really does,” Ryder sighed. She hopped down and walked over to a window to look out at Kadara Port.

“I can’t believe you picked this place over the planet that’s named after you,” Reyes joked as he walked up behind her.

“Eh, it was too on the nose," she joked. "And Kadara is important to me. After taking down the Archon, and activating Meridian, I still felt like something was missing. It took me a while to realize that I had worked so hard to find a home for our people, but I hadn’t found one for myself.” She turned to face him. 

Reyes was uncharacteristically quiet. He leaned down and kissed Ryder softly, hoping he could convey how much he wanted to fill that void for her, maybe not realizing that he already had.

Ryder’s eyes shone up at him as she continued. “Then I remembered how I felt every time I was here with you. And how hard it was to say goodbye all those times. So I figured, why not just stop saying goodbye?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aren't these two the cutest?? Thank you so much for reading. If you wanna talk more Mass Effect, you can find me on tumblr under the same username :)


End file.
